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When Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco heaved a miraculous, 70-yard pass to tie the Denver Broncos with about a minute left in their divisional playoff game Jan. 12, it instantly renewed local interest

Story Highlights

Flacco played for Blue Hens in 2006 and 2007 after transferring from Pitt

Start of new semester means no official Flacco function will occur at school

Rich Gannon was last UD alum to start a Super Bowl

When Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco heaved a miraculous, 70-yard pass to tie the Denver Broncos with about a minute left in their divisional playoff game Jan. 12, it instantly renewed local interest in the former University of Delaware quarterback.

And when he finally vanquished four-time NFL MVP and Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning in double overtime, Flacco-mania went into full swing.

On Jan. 20, bars across the state — and especially in Newark — featured plenty of UD students and alumni wearing blue and gold as they rooted for Flacco as he beat another future Hall of Fame quarterback, the New England Patriots' Tom Brady.

With the sting of former UD quarterback Rich Gannon's disastrous 2003 performance in Super Bowl XXXVII — five interceptions, three of which were run back for touchdowns — still fresh 10 years later, local optimism for Flacco's chances is brimming.

The biggest game of Flacco's career is set for Super Bowl XLVII this Sunday and Delawareans are breaking out their UD shirts, hats, jerseys and hoodies instead of purple Ravens jerseys to show support for Delaware's other famous Joe.

For the Super Bowl, he might stay local and watch at The Starboard's Shark Tank Pub in Dewey Beach wearing his Blue Hen polo shirt instead.

"At Mother's, there were a lot of Blue Hens there wearing UD stuff, but I wore the Ravens jersey because there's nothing better than when they win and all these girls are huggin' and kissin'," jokes Warner, a 45-year-old UD alumnus. "It will definitely be a feather in Delaware's cap if he wins this game."

Flacco, a little more than five years removed from his last UD game, still looms large on campus.

In the newly opened Greene Turtle Sports Bar & Grille on South Main Street, there are Flacco-signed University of Delaware jerseys hanging on the walls. A massive banner with his image drapes Delaware Stadium during the football season. And there's an expansive photo of him signing his Ravens contract in the main entrance to the UD football coaches offices.

Even so, there is no official UD event or Super Bowl party slated in support for the former Blue Hen. As school officials point out, it happens to fall on a pretty inconvenient Sunday: move-in day for spring semester, which starts Feb. 4.

As part of USA TODAY Sports' Super Bowl coverage, we break down what an NFL championship would mean to linebacker Ray Lewis, head coach John Harbaugh and the Ravens franchise.

It's not just UD alumni in Delaware and Maryland showing Flacco love by wearing UD colors. UD graduates across the country will be getting into the act, too.

Rachel McCulley, a Newark native who graduated from UD in 2010, now lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., with her fiancé, also a UD graduate. They will be in search of a bar that caters to East Coast fans for the Super Bowl and she'll be wearing her UD football championship game T-shirt from 2010.

Last week, she wore a UD football jersey she had bought at the National 5 & 10 on Newark's Main Street — a jersey signed by her then-classmate Flacco. It was quite the conversation-starter.

"Everyone kept commenting on how it was signed. I told them I went to school with him and everyone thought that was so cool," says McCulley, 23. "It's so exciting to see him come from a small school like Delaware — it's not like Alabama. He has a lot of people rooting for him."

In addition to the local connection, Flacco's season is a tale of redemption that any football fan can latch onto.

In April, Flacco was asked where he thinks he ranks among NFL quarterbacks and his confident answer spurred mocking headlines around the country.

The Washington Post wrote that Flacco was "tip-toeing into the realm of the delusional."

CBS Sports downgraded him: "The reality is that Flacco's more like a top-15 quarterback."

And NBC Sports sniffed, "If he thinks he's the best quarterback, then he necessarily thinks he deserves to be paid more than any other quarterback. If that's the case, Flacco will be waiting for a while."

Now, with the Super Bowl upon him, Flacco is creeping up on Joe Montana's single-season record of 11 postseason touchdowns without an interception. Flacco has eight going into Sunday's game.

He even earned a comparison to Rocky Balboa in The New York Times last week for his underdog tale. And there are 1st Mariner Bank billboards across the Baltimore area in support of Flacco, including one that screams, "Making UD alum proud — go Joe!"

That excitement has spread to a group of about 25 to 30 Blue Hens who will gather Sunday with their families for their annual Super Bowl party in Milltown. The group has attended UD home football games for more than 20 years.

Normally, everyone wears the NFL jerseys of their favorite teams for the Super Bowl bash. This year, it will look more like a UD homecoming tailgate, drenched in blue and gold with mascot YoUDee embroidered on much of it. This time, they will cheer as one, says Kathy Foster, a UD graduate who lives in Wilmington.

"Maybe this is our time," says Foster. "Here's little Delaware with so much going on right now with Joe Flacco, Joe Biden and (UD women's basketball star) Elena Delle Donne.

"It's an exciting time to be an alumni. We have a lot to celebrate."

***

Ryan Cormier also writes for The (Wilmington, Del.) News Journal, a Gannett property

Despite forcing four Eagles turnovers, the Ravens squandered a 10-point halftime lead in their first loss of 2012. Baltimore could only muster two field goals in the second half and Michael Vick ran in a touchdown with 1:55 to play to win it for Philadelphia.

With a heavy heart less than 24 hours after the death of his brother, Torrey Smith's second game with 4:01 to play, cut New England's lead to two points. Justin Tucker drilled a 27-yard field goal as time expired to give the Ravens the win.

Jacoby Jones tied an NFL record, returning a kickoff 108 yards for a touchdown and the Ravens held on to win as Dallas kicker Dan Bailey missed a 51-yard field goal with six seconds to play after the Cowboys recovered an onside kick.

In a see-saw affair, Redskins rookie Kirk Cousins came on for the injured Robert Griffin III on the final drive of regulation, throwing for a touchdown with 29 seconds to play. Kai Forbath's 34-yard field goal in overtime handed the Ravens their second consecutive loss.

Baltimore's slide continued, falling behind 17-0 at the end of the first half when Chris Harris returned an interception 98 yards for a touchdown. It was 31-3 midway through the fourth as the Broncos handed the Ravens their third consecutive loss.

In Ray Lewis' final career home game, the Ravens kept the Colts out of the end zone as Joe Flacco picked up a playoff win for the fifth consecutive season to start his career. "This is our year," Anquan Boldin said after racking up all 145 of his receiving yards in the second half.

In one of the most wild playoff games in NFL history, Joe Flacco connected with Jacoby Jones on a 70-yard touchdown pass with 31 seconds left in the fourth, sending the game to overtime. Neither team ever held a lead more of more than seven points. Justin Tucker's 47-yard field goal early in the second overtime period sent the Ravens to their third AFC title game in five seasons.